


Saving Robin

by DaemonBites



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Batdad, Batfamily, Gen, I have a problem that I can only write in med res, I just want to save the boys, In med res, Protective Siblings, Robin Protection Squad, Self-Indulgent, This is an au now, and steph, mostly the robins, oh fuck, pretty crack, this is gunna be a batfam dump ahahaha
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-19
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-03-08 01:03:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18884968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaemonBites/pseuds/DaemonBites
Summary: The Joker raises the crowbar again and Robin- Jason is too weak to even brace himself for the impact.There’s a loud thunk and he’s blinking back the haze in his eyes to stare at the Joker’s still form on the dirty floor.Huh.





	1. Saving Robins

Her hands are shaking as she murmurs out reassurances. She’s terrified. Terrified. This is after Jason watched her plant a solid one into the Joker’s skull so hard the monster passes out. She’s gone even further and has thrown the Joker off the side of the building without a second glance. Jason thinks he’ll find that funny when he can properly breathe again. 

“I... I don’t know any first aid but- Ba-Batman should be here soon.” She pauses through another reassurance and turns to someone he can’t see. “Is he? That... that’s good. We should leave.”

Jason watches her through dimming eyes, feels the touch of lips pressing against his forehead. 

“Please don’t die.” She pleads with so much pain in her voice his own breath rattles beneath his ribs in answer. “He’s coming to save you.”

You saved me. Jason wants to croak but then she’s up and fleeing to the corner of the room. He tries to call her back when-

“Robin! Rob- JASON!” The desperation in his voice shatters through Batman and it’s Bruce who runs to him. It’s Bruce whose voice seems to crack every time he calls his name. There’s checking hands, gentle and shaking and Jason sobs in part pain and relief as his dad picks him up to bring him back home. “You’ll be alright, Jaylad. I won’t- you’re going to be alright.”

Bruce hasn’t seen her, maybe he can’t but Jason can’t be sure with all the pain. He lets his head loll to the side and she’s there. 

Jason watches as she sinks back into the shadows and vanishes. 

One year later

They never find Jason’s savior. 

Oh they try, Bruce tries his damndest. He’s even trying long after Jason’s thrown his hands up for an opportunity to properly say his thanks. 

It doesn’t help that Bruce is convinced there had been another person there. Between Jason’s rambling and jumbled memories he can’t exactly deny it, but at the same time he can’t be bothered by Bruce’s rising overprotectiveness. He’s always thought of Batman as someone who loomed. 

Not as a hovering dad. 

Dick comes by frequently now, hugging him often and just as protective as everyone in their family is becoming. It’s driving Jason insane but at least Dick can be convinced to some old-fashioned fun. Besides, it’s kind of nice to finally have Dick not look at him like he’s physically in pain. 

Sometimes, Dick even lets him come with his Titans on missions. 

He doesn’t see his savior, not until a year later and he’s breaking into a warehouse with Batman to save a kidnapped Timothy Drake. 

He’s angry. He knows Tim. Bruce has been letting the boy come over due to the Drake’s busy schedule and despite feeling a bit territorial Tim is smart and hard not to like. 

The boy is also, very obviously, lonely. 

Jason is not above admitting that he’s kind of fond of the sleep-deprived brat. 

“I fucking swear, you pieces of shit! He’s 11!” There’s the sounds of shouting and Jason freezes. He knows that voice. 

“B! B, I think it’s her!” He doesn’t have to elaborate and he barely hears Batman’s warning not to be hasty because he’s running forward towards the dimly-lit center of the room. 

The first one he spots is Tim because the boy is running full tilt towards him when he steps out of the shadows, one eye swollen shut and trying not to cry. The second is her, eyes masked in a domino not unlike his and beating the shit out of a man on the ground in anger. 

“She-she just appeared out of nowhere.” Tim is clinging to his cape and though it hinders movement Jason can’t find it in himself to pull it away. “I think she’s a meta.”

Yeah, no shit. The other men who’d gone and decided to kidnap an eleven year old laid several feet from his savior, looking as if they’d been flung about like errant flies. His savior- his and Tim’s?- is still kicking in the man’s ribs with angry but controlled strikes of her combat boots.

Jason will bet a turn on the Batmobile that it’s the one that gave Tim a black eye. 

“You hurt anywhere then?” He turns and checks over Tim because the girl clearly doesn’t need any help and Jason trusts her. 

Tim shakes his head, biting his lip before lunging and hugging his midriff. Jason returns it easily, squeezing in comfort. “Just my eye.”

“Robin.” The faint swish of his cape alerts them of his presence and despite himself, Robin tugs Tim closer as Batman draws near them. 

“B.” There’s a distinct lack of sound coming from behind him. He hopes she’s still there when he turns around. 

With a careful once-over to both Robin and Tim, Batman turns his attention to the meta in the room. Robin resists rolling his eyes because, of course, he’s going to be a paranoid asshole regardless of their history. Batman is still prickly whenever any of the JL members come around for a ‘work’ visit. 

“B!” He’s not whining. Nu uh. “Don’t be a dick.”

Bruce comes out for a split second, glancing at him. Swear jar. He resists cursing again. Agent A’s probably listening now, drawn in by some kind of scary ninja instinct. 

It goes as fast as it comes and Batman stands in front of them again. He straightens too because he’s Robin and not so subtly pushes Tim behind him. 

“State your name and business.”

As if startled, the girl lets out a giggle before clamping it behind her hands. She looks at them in horror, what little they could see of her face is a bright shade of red. She can’t be that older than he is, despite being so short. He can’t really tell what is what with the shifting black... something, obscuring her face and body. It looks as if she‘s being swallowed by it. 

The image is more than a little terrifying.

The silence stretches and her nervous laughter eventually stops. “We haven’t decided on a name yet.” We? “Our business? Erm- that’s a bit... Will you believe me if I tell you I just want to help?”

Batman is stone beside him. She’s changed pronouns halfway through her statement and it’s setting alarm bells in their heads. “No.”

She doesn’t look surprised in the slightest. She sighs, glancing sideways and snorting at something they can’t see. “And get thrown into Arkham? Hell no.”

“You crazy, lady?” Robin blurts out and winces when Tim gives him a disproving look. It isn’t like he wants to badmouth her. The teen was his savior too. “Please tell me you ain’t.”

She laughs again, and the sound is painful like she’s a breath away from bursting out in tears. “I wish I was. I’m probably lying like a vegetable somewhere. Who knows? But for now let’s say I’m stuck and I want to help, yeah?”

Batman wants to argue. He’s rearing for it but Robin swiftly puts a stop to it with a not-so-subtle kick to the shins. It probably barely registers but Batman doesn’t open his mouth and issues some sort of territorial challenge so score. 

“Well regardless,” a word he wouldn’t even have thought existed to use years ago. “You saved me, crazy lady. So thanks.” 

Tim steps up beside him and a shot of something that stank of pride zipped through him. The Baby Bird thanks her with a firm tone, looking his normal rich- white boy self despite the purpling eye. 

He kind of looks like Bruce. 

Huh. 

“Try to stay out of trouble. We won’t be in for a few months.” She’s grinning, looking very pleased as she nods to Batman like she’s about to go on a sanctioned mission. “Out of country stuff. I’m hoping not to take too long.”

“I’m sure we’ll live.” The Bat of Gotham refuses to be the butt of a joke of course. He’s completely ridiculous and Robin’s going to be ribbing him about this for days. 

Her grin turns a hint feral. She continues to smile at them as she seems to glide backwards in a movement that’s no doubt going to plague some choice nightmares. And then, just like the first time, the shadows cover her entirely and she vanishes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is pretty much me deciding I want to publish my batfam stuff even if a lot of them are drabbles and/or plot bunnies. I might add and edit them as I go along but expect OC’s and maybe slight OOC moments because I’m a pretty new fan of this beautiful dumpster fire of a family. The timeline will get shanked and/or wibbbly wobbly-ed over because reasons. XD
> 
> Thanks and enjoy!


	2. Little Robin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It took months, MONTHS for her to convince Talia. 
> 
> But looking at little Damian train with his wooden sword with deathly grace enough to make her envious?
> 
> It was well worth it.

“My mother would never have let me come if I wasn’t ready.” He finishes another set with an upward swing of his wooden sword, a compromise by his unwanted caretaker when he nearly took off a shipmate’s arm.

She- call me Alice- doesn’t even look up from her phone, tucking a lock behind her ear. “I convinced her to let you leave. There’s a difference.”

He itches to take a swing at her in annoyance but the last time he did the ‘shadow’ living inside her didn’t take to it kindly. He probably spent a good half hour dangling at the side of the ship before Alice had come out from her room and demanded ‘Mikhail’ to pull him back on deck.

Damian, heir to his father’s legacy, is not afraid of this demon. His mother would be ashamed.

“Mother is not someone to be persuaded.” He’s been trying for years ever since he learned of his Father. Damian narrows his eyes. “What did you tell her?”

“The truth. You’d be better off with your father.” She sighs and the shadow resting near her feet shifts around like a cat. “Hopefully.”

He lowers his sword, looking out into the moving horizon. The ship is strictly manned by his mother’s people and Damian is far from stupid. Whatever this ‘escort’ of his told his Mother, Grandfather most certainly did not approve of it. “Mother says my Father is a great man. It will be an honor to hone my skills by his side.”

She laughs, looking back at her it’s clear it’s at something her dark companion had said. It’s irritating on one hand, to learn that he cannot hear a part of a conversation but at the same time Damian doesn’t think he’d like to hear the Demon _talking_.

“They’ll love you, little D. You don’t have to worry about it.” She’s grinning and he ignores the warmth creeping up his cheeks. “And remember what I said?”

“Pennyworth holds the real power in Wayne Manor.” He recites dutifully, one of the first things she actually tells him about his Father’s home. It was so odd Damian couldn’t even bring himself to ask why his Father’s butler is ranked so high in their household.

She grins at him, as if sharing a great joke, and Damian finds himself smiling back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shortie. Hella shortie but I figured writing Talia will be a headache and a half i’m not prepared for. XD


	3. Secret Robin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim doesn’t mean to keep it secret for so long. 
> 
> But honestly? At this point, Tim is wondering exactly how long it will take for them to notice.

The sad part is, they’re not even terrible liars. 

“Just tripped on something with the lights off, ‘s nothing.” Jason grins at him before grimacing as his swollen cheek throbs in pain. “I got worse back in the Alley.”

Which will normally sidetrack a person or make them unbearably awkward enough to let it go. 

“You know how some of these parties can go, Tim.” Bruce is giving him a look that’s hoping he really doesn’t, one arm cast in a sling. “And it’s just a sprain.”

“Ha! Probably pulled one dancing in your old age.” Jason snickers, elbowing Tim like it’s some kind of inside joke. 

Bruce raises a brow and nods at Tim. “Careful there, Jay. Tim’s an old soul. You should consider yourself surrounded.”

So, no. As far as Tim’s concerned. The Waynes aren’t terrible liars. He doesn’t even consider Alfred as part of the equation since the man was apparently an actor and that was totally cheating. 

It still doesn’t make it less painful watching them flail around trying to explain their way around being the Dynamic Duo of Gotham. 

“Jay?” It’s one of the few nights he’s been persuaded to stay in the manor and Tim’s been trying Alfred’s tea to help him sleep. “Is that you?”

There’s clatter of Jason hitting something, one of those hallway tables and a curse as a vase almost falls over. “You still not sleeping, squirt?”

“In a bit.” He stays in his seat. Tim is pretty sure Jason’s in his uniform, sent back early since they still have class in the morning. “Did you want some tea?”

“Y-yeah! I just- um- I kind of spilled something. Be right back!” Alfred’s going to flip if he actually does spill something just to prove the lie. “Don’t tell Alfie!”

Tim grins to himself. Maybe he won’t tell about the ‘spill’. But Jason owes Alfred a dollar in the morning. 

.

“Uh, Bruce?” He’s reaching for it before he can even think about it. “What’s-“

Bruce snatches it off the table, face reddening in a look of embarrassment. He coughs, clearing his throat. “I’ll just ah- someone must’ve left it here during the last gala.” 

Bruce gives him a look drenched in horror. The black cloth in his hand immediately hidden behind his back like Tim’s just caught him sneaking a cookie. 

Tim almost, almost doesn’t think about it. He almost dismissing it for nothing but then...

Oh.

He doesn’t flush from embarrassment, no. The redness on his face might have something to do with how much he’s trying to hold back his laughter. 

“I... see.” Tim resists the urge to put his hand up to his face. How has Bruce not figured it out yet? Did this mean he has to fake being traumatized by the thought of Bruce doing illicit activities?

Scratch that, now it’s in his brain.

Someday, he’s going to be laughing with Bruce for this. Laughing at the time the billionaire tried to hide his Batman cowl from an 12 year old by pretending it’s an unknown woman’s lingerie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has the potential to be added on so I’ll just pop this here and put any more ideas I get later. XD


	4. Mikhail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It starts with a name.

It happens in flashes. 

One moment It’s existing in one place and- then- another. 

It blinks, an action It has never done before, feeling out the form it recognizes as It’s own yet not. 

The whole thing is incredibly curious. 

There is a creature huddled at the center of a space, curled up in a position that cannot be... comfortable. It’s interesting, all this hidden knowledge now flooding into It’s being. 

The creature is a girl, not old but not young. She is... crying. Small and gasping, more air than the water flowing from her eyes. Tears. 

It wonders what the word ‘sadness’ could possibly mean. 

The next comes easier- faster? The same room with her lying on the object her people call a bed. The girl is still, so perfectly still. For a creature that constantly shifted and changed, the stillness looks painful. 

What is pain?

The next ones come in bursts. Most of the time it is her room, some she is outside, alone, with her kind. The pull is becoming familiar and It learns the word she feels surrounded by those she calls friends. 

Is that what It is?

Alone?

At times It wonders if the feelings are actually hers. Alone but not lonely. The words seem to run circles in her head. She is confused. 

Something It’s becoming accustomed to. 

It tries to get her attention one time, knocking down an empty cup on her table. The cup startles her, eyes wide at the fallen item and mouth agape and bloodless. 

When It tries to do it again she sets her mouth in a thin line and firmly says: “No.”

Can she see It? No, it doesn’t seem so. If she can she’d probably scream. 

Despite that, she is aware now and somehow the flashes become longer, until It’s staying for days. The emotion boredom comes often, filling It as It does the Emptiness It came from. 

She tastes of fear. 

She should not be afraid. 

“You’re alright.” Voices are hard so It borrows one, a voice she is familiar with. “I only want to show you something.”

She twitches in her half-sleep, the gleam in her eyes is terror. That wouldn’t do. It wants her to understand. It will never hurt her. 

Placations spill with the borrowed voice in a makeshift throat. It’s too late though. Her mind is strong and she breaks free of It’s hold with a strangled scream. 

They stop. 

The flashes disappear. 

And after months of seeing her, years of watching her laugh and cry and her world burst into color and dim It realizes something. 

It is afraid. 

It is horrifyingly alone and terribly afraid. 

It tries to pull back, tug that faint connection until it frays. This is insanity. She’s the one who pulled It first. Why is she so frightened now?

“Please.” Nothing can hear It. There is nothing here. “Please.”

It cannot be Nothing any longer. 

“Mikhail.” Suddenly the room is right there. The girl, sitting on the bed with her knees tucked beneath her. She still doesn’t see It but somehow she knows. 

She knows It’s there. 

“It’s a good name, yeah?” The smile on her face is wary but it’s much better than abject terror. “Mikhail. I hope you like it.”

There is something significant about this moment, something he can’t quite put into words. Not yet anyways. But he’ll learn. Mikhail will learn everything he can from this girl, his Alice. 

Because despite her fear, despite the overwhelming confusion she’s still feeling she’s doing what everyone who’s ever been alone always does. 

She makes a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a full blown out AU now but I haven’t written this consistently in a while so eff it. 
> 
> If you all want a great ass Batfam fic with a major OC player, check out Cor et Cerebrum by audreycritter. (How do I link stuff?) This whole AU is inspirational and whoever they are should probably write a Batman movie ahahah I wish I could write like them. 
> 
> Also if you check out my other work ‘It Never Talked Until Now’ this is basically the flipside of that shitshow I just incorporated it with this character. I name things I’m afraid of, sue me. 
> 
> Thanks for the comments by the way. :) it’s really helping me get my fuzzies off jk
> 
> (Horror is my dream genre together with high-end Fantasy)


	5. First Robin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nanananananana
> 
> Nanananananana
> 
> Nananananana
> 
> Nightwing~

“I am the Night.”

“Robin.”

He grins. Impeccable timing as always. “Ha. That brings back memories.”

“You shouldn’t be in the cold for so long.”

“Yeah yeah. I’m not a little kid anymore. A little cold won’t put me down.” Overprotective as always. It’s almost sweet if it didn’t become controlling. He passes the basketball in his hands to Bruce. “Jay isn’t much for basketball, is he?”

“Football more than anything. Though Tim’s dissuaded him from joining the team. Something about brain injuries.” Bruce makes a shot, and the ball goes in smoothly, as if the man played everyday.

“Whole powerpoint and everything?” He can almost see it too. The boy was too earnest at times. “He’d make for an interesting Robin, yeah?”

Bruce stumbles through a pass, nearly dropping the ball and face going pink, visible even in the dark. It’s nice to see Dick can still fluster Bruce so effectively without even trying.

“You’ve been talking to Jay.”

“You make it sound like we’re doing something illegal, B.” He quickly steals the ball back, taking a shot and grinning as Bruce failed to block it. “But you know little wing is much more independent than I am.”

“He didn’t have to choose another Robin.”

“Oh so you’re the only one who can?” He caught the ball as it rebounded, passing it a little too hard back to Bruce. “It’s still my name.”

“Yes.”

“But Batman needs a Robin.”

Bruce lets out a sigh, spinning the ball on a finger. “He could always not leave.”

“And there’s the reason Jay calls you a helicopter parent.” He rolls his eyes. They should’ve known really. The man practically adopted the whole of Gotham when he became a vigilante. “And he’s not leaving. He’s preparing. Us Robins can’t stay in the Bat Cave forever.”

“You could.” Bruce grumbles and it’s so parentally embarrassing Dick can’t help but laugh. “You shouldn’t have left.”

“You’re getting soft in your age, old man.” It’s officially nearing Bruce’s emotional capacity, he can tell. He’ll have two more sentences of parental wisdom before conking out. He throws an arm over Bruce’s shoulder, something he’d never thought he’d be able to manage when he was ten and swinging around Bruce’s chandeliers. “Now I’m cold enough to want some of Alfred’s hot chocolate. Then we can talk about Tim’s training schedule once he accepts the job.”

“You think he’ll say yes?”

“B.” He scoffs, placing a hand to his chest in mock offense. “Jay might have made Robin a badass but I’m the one who made being Robin _cool_. He’ll say yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I write like it’s a scene from a tv show. Help. 
> 
> It’s safe to say Red Hood won’t exist in this but Jason taking another name is a given. Little Wing needs his electric chest piece. And maybe, maaaaaybe, a gun or two.


	6. Batdad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He was entirely too old for this. 
> 
> Entirely. Too. Old.

“A spitting image.” Alfred can’t help it. He stares.

The child, Bruce’s _son,_ glares right back at him. He’s entirely too ready to fight, looking angry at the world and Alfred feels his heart sink down his stomach.

The last time he’d seen a child so filled with rage the boy had just become an orphan.

As far as he knows, this child still has both.

“I thought it might be too much to spring up.” It’s Jason’s savior, he’s heard her voice come out of the computer in Bruce’s bid to track her down. She’s even younger than he imagined her to be, a brunette with dark eyes of mixed descent. By her feet curls the shadow Tim has repeatedly explained to be a separate entity that helped her fight.

An alarming thing to be sure.

“A paternity test will be in order.” There’s no possible way that Bruce will accept it just because the boy happens to look exactly like him as a child.

She grimaces and Alfred wonders just how much she knows about them. Too much, he’s gathering.

Too much to know that Bruce can be the very opposite of tact.

“I was hoping you’d do it? I uhm... I’d rather not have Damian overwhelmed.” The statement earns a growl but other than a squeeze of reassurance on his shoulder, the sulking boy is ignored. “And Batman will be a bit busy anyways, what with some of the League scouting the city. Ms. Al Ghul wants to make sure her father didn’t follow us here.”

“It will take a few days.” He’ll have to be sneaky about it, no doubt, or bring the boy’s bullheaded father down on them. He’s warning them only because he’s finally recognized the look on Damian’s face.

The boy is practically vibrating with nerves.

“That should be alright.” She gives Alfred a look like he knows exactly what he’s thinking and gives an almost imperceptible tilt of her head. “Get everything ready. Ease Mr. Wayne into it or something. Dami will be getting ready too, yeah?”

“I am always prepared.” The boy puffs up, as if it would earn himself a few more inches. He’s certainly wearing the Wayne pride with ease. “I heard my father has collected stra- other children in the Manor, Pen- Mr. Pennyworth?”

Alice stares unrepentantly down at the scowling child, fingers clearly aimed to pinch him again.

“Alfred would be perfectly acceptable, Master Damian.” A handful this one, Alfred will call it a miracle if no rooms will require renovating after Damian’s arrival in the Manor. “And yes, it seems you’ll be gaining yourself a few brothers in the process, though the eldest currently resides somewhere else.”

“Richard.” Damian answers despite having been asked no questions. “Alice says he’s the best out of all of them.”

She flusters at Alfred’s quelling look. Competitiveness that can devolve to maliciousness between siblings shall not be tolerated. “I said no such thing. I said you’ll probably _like_ him best.”

“What is the difference?” The boy, he can’t be more than 9, looks up at them in confusion.

A hint of rage wells up from deep inside Alfred’s chest. To have been taught such a thing... to have to be the best to be _loved_.

This will not do.

This will not do at all.

“I’m sure your father and brothers will be more than happy to teach you, Master Damian.” He drops to a crouch, ignoring the strain put on his knees when Damian rocks back like he’s never seen anyone try to lower themselves to listen to him. “And so will I, my dear boy. So will I.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alfred worries constantly for his ever receding hairline. 
> 
> Also gunna stop worrying about the word count. I’d rather write short than not at all bcoz I’m worrying too much about it.


	7. Alice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It shouldn’t be long now.
> 
> Soon, she won’t be able to help them anymore.

‘Is this necessary?’

“No.” She finishes tying up the last of the robbers, rendered unconscious with swift strikes to their necks. “But we might as well.”

‘Will they not look for you this way?’

Alice tries not to grin. Mikhail is still learning the subtleties of language and tone. As it is his words almost always falls flat to anyone who can hear him.

It is both their fortunes they never need words to convey real meaning.

“They’re always looking. J is probably the only one who actively doesn’t. He’s cool that way even though the curiosity’s probably eating him alive.” She laughs as they reach the top of a 42 story building, Mikhail looming above her head.

She’s pretty sure she was afraid of heights back _then_ , but the memories grow hazier every time the sun sets over the horizon. If she had waited too long after she appeared here...

‘I would have reminded you.’ Mikhail wraps himself around her, cold, always cold. Her feet dangle off the edge of the railing and the metal bars are infinitely warmer than her constant companion.

“Would you have?”

‘... eventually.’ An almost grumble and Alice laughs again, overjoyed. Learning their intertwined existence had been a trial and a half, sharing emotions and thoughts was kind of ridiculous when you shared it with an empty being. It was akin to teaching a doll how to feel.

Ultimately, it was something that could not be done.

So Alice taught him other things instead, taught him to parse _her_ emotions. She’d name them as best she could and sometimes Mikhail was able to name them even better than her.

Or more accurately, he made them simpler for Alice to work through.

“Well at least you never really forget anything.”

‘I cannot remember everything for you.’

“And I don’t expect you to.” She raises a fist and bumps it to the general vicinity of Mikhail’s head. “We’ll work through it. And I doubt the Waynes will ever let me forget what I’ve done anyways.”

Perhaps it’s a side effect, some sort of equivalent exchange she’d unconsciously agreed to.

Perhaps she’s forgotten the agreement entirely.

Still, it’s a brutal fact that she’s losing pieces of her memories, even ones that didn’t have anything to do with _here_ but everything to do with _herself_.

Just last week, Mikhail had to remind her that she was allergic to shrimp. Never mind the fact that something so trivial will never bother her again as long as they were together.

“How long before I forget everything else?” What kind of information would she forget? It had taken her months to realize where she was, to realize what she had to do.

The mission helped her break through the indescribable feeling of loss that ate away her being.

‘Not long.’ A brush against her cheek, a question she didn’t really want answered. ‘What of your memories when you were... young... is fading away.’

“I hope we’ve done enough.” Alice takes a steadying breath, stretching up her arms over her head to work out the cricks on shoulders. Sunset came an hour ago, the city is ready to wake. She turns her back to the edge of the roof, smiling at the Being that had answered her soul. “Ready?”

‘When you are.’

They close their eyes and let themselves fall back to the heart of Gotham.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can’t believe this took this long but when the brain refuses... adding a tiny(?) bit of plot or the beginnings of one. Hit me plot, please.


	8. Stalker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She’s there again. 
> 
> Granted, it’s only been a week since she started but...
> 
> Robin is Batman’s student, after all.

Dick likes to think that without Bruce’s influence during his developing years, he wouldn’t have grown up to be so paranoid.

He’s not the worst of the family to be sure, that award is heading right up to Tim’s lap, what with how utterly Bruce-like the kid could be. Or maybe the new addition of Damian who likes to act as Bruce would in his 50s with an 8 year old body. 

Still, random citizens just sitting right in front of the Bludhaven Station for hours with an increasingly worrying penchant for showing up even during the dead of the night is something he notes immediately. He’s checked both as Officer Grayson and Nightwing. 

Unfortunately, putting a mic underneath the bench yielded nothing. They never say anything, not anything substantial anyways. One word answers, the sudden bursts of laughter and just pleasant humming that once manages to knock-out the ‘running on fumes’ Dick while listening to it. 

So at this point Dick rifles through some Missing persons files, particularly the ones from Bludhaven’s local institution. Of course, nothing comes up so he almost widens the search but figures that was one step too close to becoming the ever-paranoid Batman so he squares up and decides to do it the most direct way. 

“Hey there.” He greets as neutrally as possible. He isn’t wearing his uniform but they are still across the station so it’ll be a matter of time before someone he knows spots him. “You new here? Haven’t seen you around before.”

She gives him a funny look, which is fair, and proceeds to give him a heart attack. “Hello, Richard. Don’t worry. I was just checking up on you.”

“...”

“...”

“... do I know you?” He’s totally not freaking out. Definitely not, as Tim would say, the opposite of whelmed.

The funny look returns but a degree higher and now they’re just there, looking at each other in complete confusion. “You... don’t know me?”

“I- what-“ he takes a deep breath, closing his eyes and pinching his nose to get his head back straight. When Dick opens them again she’s now giving him a genuine look of concern and it just throws him off again. “Okay. So you know me but I don’t know you and you’re ‘checking up’ on me.”

There’s a morphing expression of humor twitching at the side of her lips now and this is definitely not what Dick signed up for.

“Ma’m, you do know that stalking is illegal and I am, in fact, an officer of the law.” Shockingly this just makes her crack up though she stifles it quickly behind her hand. “Look, you seem like a nice gal and all but this isn’t exactly a healthy coping mechanism and I’m sorry to say that you aren’t my type at all.”

She’s definitely got some form of insane in her body because she’s barely holding back the giggles. Her shoulders are shaking and she’s twisting to one side in an extra effort to stop it.

“I know.” His stalker chokes back a laugh and sobers enough to look him straight in the eye. “Redheads, right?”

Defcon 1. This has gone from zero to a hundred and Dick curses himself for going to confront her in his civilian identity of all things.

Bruce is going to ground him somehow, he just knows it.

“Okay. Okay, I’m sorry.” The laughter dies down enough for her to give him the universal sign of ‘calm down’ and she stands up. She barely reaches his chest but Dick knows it doesn’t mean she can’t be some sort of meta with a grudge. “In my defense, I forgot no one but Damian and Mr. Pennyworth have ever seen my face. I thought there’d have been rough sketches at least.”

It takes a second, several seconds that feels like eternity and the pieces start to fall into place. The sudden appearance, her seemingly one-sided conversations with herself, the fact that she took watch over the Bludhaven Police Dept in the mornings and evenings without regard for consistency.

She was, quite literally and accurately, checking up on him like a self-appointed guardian angel.

“Yo- you-?!” Dick chokes on his breath.

“Hello, Mr. Grayson.” She smiles at him, all traces of madness gone and replaced with a gentle smile, and gives a small curtsy. “It’s very nice to meet you. You can call me Alice.”

He stares at her for several seconds, still reeling, before uttering out a soft: “fuck.“

Alice gives an understanding nod, almost looking sheepish. “If it makes you feel better, I don’t know where you live.”

That definitely doesn’tmake Dick feel any better. “You don’t?”

“Thought about it but it was... too creepy?” Alice shrugs and Dick is going to drive up to Gotham and shake his little brothers in frustration, then give Bruce a dressing down about being the ‘World’s Greatest Detective’ for the third time this year. “It’s not like I post up at the Manor either. I’m just... helping.”

Dick is a curious idiot. “Why?”

This seems to actually stop her short and she smiles again, soft and somehow incredibly resigned in a way that pulls at something in Dick’s chest. “Why are you _you_?”

“Grayson!” There’s his cue, hilariously well-timed and Dick tries to hide his sigh of relief. Something about Alice comes off as distinctly unhinged or just, perhaps, disconcerting given how much she knows about them. For all the people who knows the family’s secret identities not one of them has ever just appeared out of nowhere with all the knowledge in the world like she’s read them off ridiculously accurate dossiers.

She gives a nod towards his colleague who’s flagging Dick down from across the street. A bank robbery by the tone of his voice. “Don’t worry. I’ll be around.”

And they definitely did not spout off one-liners like some two-bit villain.

Dick makes an awkward shuffle of farewell and strides for the crossing, trying not to appear like he’s in too much of a hurry before remembering something.

“Thanks.” He clears his throat and repeats it when Alice just seems startled by his sudden turn. “Thank you. For er- my brothers.”

He whips back around too fast to be certain that her eyes widen and her cheeks go red in reply. Dick has a job to do and then an impromptu ride back to Gotham to consolidate his information with everyone else’s in the form of a very serious family meeting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this... took a while. XD


	9. Bluejay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bruising on his stomach is making it hard to brace himself for every swing. 
> 
> But he has a job to do and he’d be damned if he couldn’t finish it.

Two hours left. 

Two hours is definitely not enough time to find some wayward bombs Ra’s had thought to scatter throughout the city like confetti. The bastard had not taken his heir’s disappearance very well and the distraction Damian’s mother provided could only go for so long. 

They’d managed to beat back his assassins and find the majority of his ‘collateral bombs’ but some still unfailingly remained. 

His boots stomped on another dingy rooftop, a quick aim and fire of his grappling hook propelling him to the next one with practiced ease. 

After B he knows Gotham best, lived in her dirty underbelly for years that couldn’t be erased no matter how at home he feels in the enormous Manor. B might have been running around Gotham longer than any of them but it’s his instinctual knowledge of her workings that makes him perfect for this. 

Still, he’s only one teen superhero in a city filled with dark alleys and hidden places. Finding the remaining bombs is going to take time. 

Two hours isn’t enough. 

When he lands on a roof high enough to be a vantage point, another set of footsteps follows his own. 

He whirls around, readying a birdarang but catches sight of who it is and loosens. He blurts out before he can think of it. “Can you help us?”

She nods without a beat of pause, the shadows vantablack against her skin. “What are you looking for?”

He takes a breath. Dick had been adamant with his assessment, protectiveness running high and Jason can’t exactly blame him. B is the only one taking it seriously and Tim and Alfred remains neutral but in favor of trusting the self-appointed lookout. 

Jason and Damian knew better. 

“Bombs. Ra’s had his people plant them.” He whips out his phone, scrolling for the picture of one of the early ones they’d found. “They’re small and homemade so the scans can barely pick them out. We think there may be at least 5 more.”

Even finding out the numbers had been like pulling teeth. If they miss even one the explosion could be enough to get several people killed. 

Fuck Ra’s. 

Her body goes rigid, the exposed lines of her body going stiff and nose flaring up in protectiveness. “Where is Damian?” 

“The brat’s safe.” They don’t have time for this, no matter how reassuring it all was. “Can you help?”

“Can we pick them up without them blowing?”

“Yes. The only ones left should be from here and 5 blocks out in every direction. The others are making sure there aren’t stray ones outside this zone.” 

“Got it.” She doesn’t waste time and runs to the edge, throwing herself over it. “We’ll find you!”

“Jason.” B growls from the comms. He sounds like he’s struggling to breathe from a cracked rib. 

He huffs. “No names, B.”

 

In the end he finds 3 of them, stashed next to abandoned scaffoldings and a dingy rooftop that could collapse from a strong enough rainfall. 

She appears with 20 minutes to spare and B and N only a few seconds behind. She’s holding one extra bomb than the declared two. 

“It was on a gargoyle.” Jason will bet his left leg it’s one of their preferred perches based on the utter fury on her face. “I’m going to kill them.”

“No killing.” It’s B, perfectly behind her and pulling out all the stops to look as intimidating as he can with the purpling bruise on his jaw. 

“It’s an expression.” He can’t see it but he knows she’s rolling her eyes. “Hello, Batman.”

“... good evening.” 

He chokes down a laugh at how utterly polite it was. He’s never understood what the fancy people meant by breeding until he saw the big Bat greeting any passing criminal who gets frightened enough to say hello. 

Alice- and she really needs a superhero name of her own now- deposits the bombs to Batman, looking him up and down as he disarms it with practiced movements. “Your ribs are broken.”

“You said you were fine!” Nightwing lands with a customary flip, looking incensed and part of it must be from the dislocated shoulder they had to set with haste. “B!”

“Watch her.” He replies in lieu and turns his back to them to report back to Alfred. 

“Sorry bout him.” Jay grins unrepentantly, staring at the useless explosives. They’ve done it. No one’s dead and they all came out fine. Tim and Damian are both safe and snuggled up down the cave like the little chicks that they are. “N made him paranoid again.”

“She’s-“ Nightwing protests and clears his throat, refusing to uncoil from his readied stance. “Suspicious. Very suspicious. No offense. How’d she even find out?”

“None taken, Nightwing.” Something about it makes the man squirm and Jay cackles at fake look of innocence on Alice’s face. “We tend to watch during patrol hours. Something seemed different so we decided to approach.”

“Thanks for that, by the way. Really saved us major time there.” 

“You’re welcome. I’m glad you’re all safe.” She’s beaming wide, looking so genuinely happy that even Nightwing had to put his escrima sticks away. “We’d like to visit Damian if we’re allowed. I think Mikhail misses him too. He’s never felt like that towards anyone before. It’s cute.”

“No.” They turn to B who’s flared up again- and really- they’ll get along well once all the paranoia runs out. He’s just as overprotective as she is. 

Jay gives his eldest brother a pointed look and Nightwing groans, running a hand on his face. “Maybe. We’ll see. Don’t look at me like that, B. You know lil D’ misses her too. He won’t stop drawing her on every other page on that sketchbook of his.”

“He does?” Alice looks very pleased, a hand on her heart and looking like she’s about to start cooing from how adorable it all was. “You can pick the place if you want. Have the whole thing be a little stakeout. I don’t mind.” 

Batman grits his teeth and Jay really prays the man allows it. He’d love to know more about his savior outside ‘working hours’ and without some villain-concocted situation for them to think about. 

“I’ll think about it.” He nods and jerks his head towards them. “Nightwing, Bluejay, time to head back.” 

He grins and gives Alice a thumbs up. That was practically a yes. Bruce is going to allow it. He just needs the tyke’s help to have it scheduled. 

“See ya, lady. Er- Mikhail too, I guess.” He nods and goes to follow B and N, who’s already absconded instead of being close to the ‘stalker’ as he’s branded her. A hand on his head stops him for a moment and he whips around to blink at her in shock. 

“Take care.” Alice cards her fingers through his hair, gentle and strangely familiar and Jason will swear he saw something black in the shape of a hand wiggle at his direction from behind her shoulder. “See you later, Bluejay.”

He’s still grinning and slightly pink when he arrives at the Manor, letting the frantic concern in Tim’s questions and Damian’s worry masked in familiar insults wash over him like a blanket. 

It’s good to be home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspiration has struck! XD


End file.
